Loose leaf binder



Feb. 19, 1935. E. L. KRAG LOOSE [LEAF BINDER Filed NOV. 29, 1929 2 Sheets-Sheet l FEL f Feb. 19, 1935. KRAG 1,991,362

LOOSE LEAF BINDER Filed Nov. 29, 1929 4 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 QC 570 1 L Patented Feb. 19, 1935 LOOSE LEAF BINDER Erik L. Krag, Chicago, 111., assignor of one-tenth to ,E. J. Andrews, Chicago, I11. I

' Application November 29, 1929, SerialNo. 410,327 9 Claims. (01. 129-47) This invention relates to loose-leaf binders and it has for its object providing improved means for shifting the loose leaves in the binder from one position to another with reference to the g, other leaves in the binder, one of the particular objects being to providemeans for shifting the leaves or narrow sheets, which may be in the binder, a very material distance with reference to other leaves or the binder itself. Another objectis to provide means for withdrawing the loose'leaves intact entirely from the binder.

Another object of the invention is to provide improved means for locking and unlocking the binder in its closed position and also partly open,

and for preventing shifting of the leaves when the binder is locked. Other objects of the in-, vention will be apparent from a consideration of the accompanying drawings and the followin description thereof, 1-

This application is a continuation in part of my Patent No. 1,754,471, dated April 15, 1930'.

'Of the drawings, Fig. 1 is a fractional plan view of a binder, when locked in its closed position, which embodies the features of my invention, certain parts of the drawings being broken away; Fig. 2 is an end view of the binder; Fig. 3 is a transversesectional View along the line 3-53 of Fig. 1; Fig. 4is a fractional sectional view along the line 4-4 of Fig. 3; Fig. 5 corresponds to Fig. 3 but shows the binderpartly open; Fig. 6 is an enlarged fractional sectional view along the line 66 of Fig. 3; Fig. 7 is an enlarged fractional View along the line 7 7' of Fig. 4; Fig. 8 is a sectional view of a slightly modified type of binder; Fig. 9 is a fractional sectional view along the line 9 9 of Fig. 8; Fig. 10 is a fragmental plan view of a modified locking mechanism for the-v binder.

The loose leaf binder which I .have illustrated to describe my invention is. an ordinary type of binder which has aframe consisting, of two sections 10 and 11 which are'pivoted or hinged together by hinges 12. Mounted in the sections are strips 13 and 14 carrying prongs 16 and 15, respectively, each of the strips having as many prongs as may be desired for properly holding the paper. Whenthe binder is closed, theends of the prongs of one strip pass through holesl'l in the otherstrip. As is well understood, the sheets of paper 18 which are to beheldin the binder have holes 19 in their inner edges through which the respective prongs and 16 pass. When the binder is to be used'for certain pur-- poses, for instance, for what are ordinarily called visible records, it is desirable to shift the sheets.

upwardly and downwardly in the binder, the length of the sheets, usually being 'much less than the length of the binder. In such a case, holes 20 are formed in the paper between the,

prongs, and, by opening the binder, the sheets 5 may be removed and shifted to other prongs, so as to bepositioned where desired.

My invention, in part, consists in improved means, for shifting one set of prongs .with'refer ence to the other. I, slidably mount the strips to which the prongs are attached, so that, when the binder is open, the strip 13 or 14 with its, prongs can be shifted longitudinally with reference to the rest of the binder, and this will shift also all of the sheetsthat are mounted on the prongs of that strip. For instance, when itis desired to shift the sheets from prongs 15 to prongs 16, the strip 14 is shiftedwith the prongs 15 untilthe desired holes inthe' sheets are opposite the prongs 16 of the strip 13.; the binder is then closed, passing the prongs'16' through the desired holes. The sheets to'be, shifted are thenturned over on the prongs l6 and released from prongs 15and the prongs 15. are shifted back to normal position. 1 j The strips 13 and 14 may be slidably mounted in the frame in any suitable manner. I prefer'to have theframe member, 21 extend back of each strip and have a flange; 22 extending" down in front of the strip; and a'flange 23, positioned in front of the lower edge of the strip, together, with the flange 22,- prov'ide means for holding the strip slidably in the proper position. A handle 24 mounted onthe end ofeach strip provides means for shifting it in either direction when de- I sired.

It is desirable to providefor sliding the strips 13 and 14 a material distance. It has 'beenc'ustomary to limit the move ment of these strips" to the distance between. two holes in the sheets.v But I prefer to provide for shifting the strips and the sheets an unlimited distance, so that certain sheets may be shifted with reference to others so 1. far as may be desired. 1, therefore, provide means'that will allow each strip 13 or 14 to,b e L slipped entirely outof the binder inoneidirece tion and to be limited in its movement to about one-half the length of the binder in the other direction. These strips are preferably shaped somewhat as indicated in Fig. 7, so as to leave a '1' space 25 between the portion of the strip 13 or 14 to which the prongs are connected and the wall 21 of theIbinder. ,And, in this space, near the central portion of the wall 21, I, provide a stop 27 which is adapted to limit the movement of the strip in one direction.

To thus limit the movement, I provide a plate 28 fixed to each end of the strip 13 or 14. This plate strikes against the stop 27 when the strip is slipped the desired distance in the binder. However, in order to remove the strip entirely from the binder, I provide an opening 29 in one of the plates 28 of each strip, this opening being large enough to allow the stop 27 to pass through the opening when the strip is pulled in the proper direction. By these means, each strip is limited in its movement in one direction to about onehalf the length of the binder, but it may be slipped entirely from the binder in the other direction. These means are provided for each of the strips 13 and 14 but, preferably, the strips are removed from the binder by slipping them in opposite directions.

I find it desirable to have binders of this nature which can be firmly locked together and, for this reason, I provide locking means which comprise a plurality of latches 35 which are integral with or fixed to a slidably mounted bar 36. These latches are adapted to pass through slots 37 in the frame pieces 38 and 67.

To control the latches conveniently, a strip 39 is slidably mounted in the frame, having a handle 40 projecting therefromyanda lever 41, pivoted to the frame piece 42, coacts with the two slidable strips by means of pins 43 fixed to the strips and playing in slots 44 in the ends of the lever. The slidable strips are guided in any suitable manner, such as by means of transverse guide members 45. It will thus be seen that, whenever it is desired to unlock the frame, it is necessary only to push the handle 40 inwardly and the latch strip 36 will be pushed outwardly so as to release the latches 35. A spring 46 resiliently holds the latches in the locked position but yields when the frame is being closed so as to allow the latches to pass through the slots 37.

However, it is frequently desirable to allow the binder to open part way and lock it in the partly open position, as indicated by Fig. 5. The means which I provide for this purpose comprises latches 55 which are fixed to the strip 36 and, hence, are operated together with the latches 35 which are also fixed to the strip 36. These latches 55 are curved and pass through openings 51 in the wall 38. When the binder is in the closed position, by operating the strip 39as described hereinabove, the latches 35 will allow the binder to be opened part way, then, by releasing the strip 39, the latches will be pulled back to the normal position and the latches 55 will prevent the binder opening farther than the desired. amount. Obviously, byagain operating the strip 39, the latches 55 may be released and thebin'der opened the full amount.

For preventing inadvertent movement of the strips '13 and 14, when the binder is open, and for properly positioning the strips, a detent member 60 is provided for each strip, slidably mounted in a support 61 fixed to the frame. This member is resiliently held against the lower edge of the strip 13 or 14 by means of springs '62, but will yield when sufficient force is applied to the strip. -In the edge of the strip 13 or 14 are formed notches 63'for coacting with the members 60. As many notches 63 as may be desired may be formed in the edge of the strip and, thus, the strip, as well as the prongs and paper, may be shifted with reference to the rest of the paper as far as may be desired. It will be understood that the distance between the notches corresponds to the distance between the two sets of prongs, so that the prongs may be brought into registry with the proper openings in the sheets of paper to be shifted.

To prevent shifting of the strips 13 or 14, when the binder is closed, I provide for each a pin 65. Each of these pins is slidably mounted in the frame by means of a bearing 50, with its'outer end 66 coacting with the lower end of the member 60. The inner end of the pin 65 passes through a slot 69 in the frame member 33 or 67 as the case may be and presses against the member 67 or 38 of the frame, when the binder is closed, so as to prevent shifting of the member 60 and the strip 13 or 14. With this means and the parts properly coacting, it will be seen that the strips 13 and'14 cannot be shifted when the binder is closed. -When the binder is open,

springs 68 hold the ends 66 against the members 60, and resist movement thereof; but, with suitable cam surfaces on the coacting ends of the members 60 and 65, the strips 13 and 14 may be shifted by overcoming the springs 62 and 68.

I find that, when the prongs are shifted, the sheets carried by the prongs rubbing against the fixed portions of the binder tend tolag'behind, and sometimes the prongs to which the sheets are to be transferred fail to register with the holes in the sheets, so that some 'difiiculty is experienced in passing the prongs into the holes. To avoid this, I prefer to fix a fly leaf '70, Figs. 8 and 9, to each of the strips 13 and 14 which is'to be shifted, in order to carry it with the strip and the sheets 18 which are carried by the prongs. By having this fly leaf fixed to the suitable strip, the sheets which are being shifted are carried along on the fly leaf and are not displaced at all with reference to the prongs. As a consequence-the prongs fixed to the opposite strip register definitely with the central portion of the holes of the shifted sheets and, hence, pass freely into the holes.

Also, I prefer to provide a back for the binder which comprises leather or yielding outer and inner portions 81 and, between these two portions, a metallic sheet 82 for stiffening purposes. This back may be rectangular at the corner 83, as indicated, or the corner may be rounded, as may be desired. The upper portion of the metallic sheet projects outwardly and to this is hinged the cover 85 of the entire book, the cover also having a stiffening metallic sheet 86 projecting part way inwardly from the hinge 87.

In order to more conveniently shift the sheets of paper 18 from one set of prongs to another, I prefer to have the prongs in sets which are distinguished by color or otherwise from the prongs of the other sets. For instance, as indicated in Fig. 1, the first four prongs may be'colored blue, the next four prongs colored red, and the next set of four prongs left in their natural color or nickel-plated, or otherwise different in appearance from the other sets. When so distinguished from each other, it is much easier for the operator to determine when the sheets have been slipped to the proper position. For instance, if

it is desired to shift the papers eight holes to the right, it is necessary only to turn the sheets over onto the prongs 15, open the binder and slip these prongs until the first set or blue prongs 15 coincide with the second set or red prongs 16. The binder is then closed sufficiently and the sheets of. paper are turned over onto the prongs 16, and the prongs 15 are then returned to their prongs in a set is not a material part of my in vention, merely the preferred method of marking being herein described.

As continual manipulations of the binder and prongs is likely to loosen the prongs from the strips 13 or 14 or break them off altogether, I provide an improved method of fastening the prongs to the strips. Referring to Fig. 7, this method consists of passing the prongs 15 through an opening in' the strip 13 and bending the end 90 against the inner side of the strip, and then welding the strip and end together, flattening the end 90 so much as may be desirable. In this manner, the prongs are very firmly held to the strips and there is no injury to the portion which passes through the opening where the greater strain occurs, and the appearance of the prong is in no way affected where it is in view. It will be'understood that the opening is made to fit the prong and, preferably, is slanting, so as to snugly clasp the prong at all points.

Fig. shows a modified operating means for unlocking the binder. This means comprises a slidably mounted strip 95 which, when forced inwardly, operates a lever 96. The lever 96 coacts with a slidably mounted bar 97 to which are fixed the latches 35 and. 55, corresponding to those hereinabove described. A spring 98 resiliently holds the latches in their locked position.

The operation of this mechanism is substantially the same as that of the locking mechanism hereinabove described.

Although I have described with considerable detail various features of my invention and the various modifications thereof, yet, it is to be understood that changes therein may be made'by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of my invention as disclosed by'the following claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. A loose leaf binder comprising a frame having two parts hinged together, a strip slidably mounted in said frame, a plurality of paperholding prongs fixed to said strip, means for sliding said strip and means for preventing sliding movement of said strip when said two frame parts are in their closed positions, and yielding means opposing movement of said strip.

2. A loose leaf binder comprising two frame parts hinged together, a slidably mounted strip in one of said parts, a plurality of paper-holding prongs fixed to said strip, and means to prevent sliding of said strip, said means being inoperative when theframe parts are in their unclosed positions.

operative by opening said frames to prevent sliding of said strip when said frame parts are in their closed positions, and means for locking said frame parts in their closed positions.

4. A loose leaf binder comprising a frame having two parts hinged together, a strip slidably mounted in said frame, a plurality 'of paperholding prongs fixed to said strip, means for sliding said strip, said strip having a plurality of notches therein, and a member adapted to coact successively with said notches, and means for locking said member. in coaction with one of said notches when said binder is closed;

5. A loose leaf binder comprising a frame having two parts hinged together, a strip slidably mounted in said frame, a plurality of paper-holding prongs fixed to said strip, means for sliding said strip entirely out of said frame and a fly leaf fixed to said slidably mounted strip.

6. A binder back comprising a frame having two hinged members, and means for locking said members in, their normal closed positions; said .means comprising a strip slidably mounted in one of said members, a plurality of latches fixed to said strip and operative means pivotally associated with said strip for sliding said strip, and resilient means tending to hold said operative means in one position of said strip, some of said latches coacting with the other member when the strip is in said position and when the two members are closed. I

'7. A binder back comprising a frame having two hinged members, and means for locking said members in their normal closed positions, said means comprising a strip slidably mounted in one of said members, a plurality of latches fixed to said strip, operative means associated with said strip for sliding said strip, and resilient means tending to hold said operative means in one position, one of said latches coacting with the other member when the strip is in said position and when the two members are closed, said operative means comprising a second slidably mounted strip.

8. A binder back as claimed in claim '7, said operative means comprising also a lever which is pivoted to said frame and pivotally associated with the respective strips, one of the lever ends being pivoted to one of said strips, the central portion of said lever being pivoted to the other strip, and the other end portion of said lever being pivotally associated with'the said frame.

9. A loose leaf binder comprising a frame, a strip slidably mounted in said frame, a plurality of paper holding. prongs fixed to said strip, means for sliding said strip from its normal position inwardly longitudinally, yielding means resisting movement of said strip from a plurality of positions as it is moved inwardly from its normal position and means for positively preventing any movement of said strip.

. ERIK L. KRAG. 

